Use Those Brown Bananas!

April 03, 2017

I can't say that Upside down cakes are a staple around here. Though mind you, Mr. Hubby does love the pineapple version of it provided it's made from scratch.

But lately, I've been seeing versions of banana upside down cake quite a lot all over the blogosphere. So the Afternoon Tea seemed like a perfect time to make one to go with Ham & Tarragon finger sandwiches.

I also found ripe red bananas that remind of smaller sweeter plantains that I decided to use. Mind you, if I have to make this again, I'll probably just end up using organic yellow bananas because Mr. Hubby buys them each week like they're going out of fashion, so I almost always have plenty of these lying around.

The whole thing take no more than a hour to put together so is perfect for a lazy Sunday.

As always, I'm using my staple cake recipe that never lets me down and I only ever use the thick pure Vanilla bean paste - none of that extract business for me. And you can forget about the imitation nonsense.

Feel free to forgo the rum or Marsala. I used some only because I had the Marsala lying around the house. I do however recommend using a cast iron skillet. It retains all that excellent uniform heat and bakes the whole thing quicker and perfectly.

So if you're like me and are always looking for clever ways to use bananas, I think you'll like this one a lot.

February 15, 2015

Writing a blog is a lot like looking into Dumbledore's pensieve & considering that I've been at it for 5 years now, I find myself constantly walking down memory lane (as you have just figured out, I am a huge fan of the J K Rowling's Harry Potter books)

As I began mixing a batch of our favorite banana, buttermilk & chocolate chip muffins I realized 3 things;

1) No matter how determined I am to stick to my weight loss journey, resisting chocolate is futile. It seems like I'll add a bit of dark to everything I bake.

2) There is a certain irony to the fact I am writing a food blog and working on losing weight simultaneously. Though I attribute any success to the fact

3) I have NEVER blogged these muffins and they are a must have around our home.

When was the last time your better half, texted you and offered to pick up groceries i.e. bananas for you?

Let's face it, when our hubbies walk out that door for work, the last think they're thinking of are their old ladies...much less grocery list for said old lady!

So imagine my surprise, when I get exactly such a text from Mr. Hubby offering to go to the store to get bananas since he's craving these muffins.

Maybe, just maybe a thought or two does wander my way during his work day. Imagine that!

November 09, 2014

That is to say, I love a nip in the air, the scent of woodsmoke coming through the chimneys and all the great root veggies, colorful gourds and squash that make an appearance in the markets.

Once the daylight savings time switches over like it did on Nov 2nd, I'm all about the squash and butternut squash is my favorite. It's sweet, mild and just plain delicious. You can make the creamiest soups with them, I love them with shrimp and of course they come alive roasted. Not to mention it takes all of 20 minutes in the oven.

So where you have butternut squash, how can you not have sage and Parmigiano Reggiano? I am completely in sync with the Italians when they worked out that combo.

But let me tell you, Sicilians love toasted breadcrumbs - they'll roll them up when they do their beccafico with sardines and line just about every pan with heaps of it.

Turns out, freshly roasted on a pan, they're genius added to this simple pasta. One thing I've learned from cooking with my Sicilian friends, is no way can I ever compete with them when it comes to their liberal use of olive oil. Not in a million years can I ever come close to the cups of the good stuff they use on a daily basis.

Needless to say and much to their chagrin, I continue to measure out my olive oil except for the final lashing at the end.

What can I say? I do my best - my said friends looks all of a 100 lbs, wet! I, on the other hand continue to look like an overstuffed sausage walking around.

Hence, the measuring because I don't think I can sleep at night with the voice of Natalie my trainer in my head asking me to watch my 'macronutrients'!

Sigh! Some people have fairy godmothers and others end up with 'guilt' godmothers.

So I know I've gone all around the mulberry bush but the point I'm trying to make is, you're going to need to use generous amounts of olive oil for this one. The toasted breadcrumbs are key and you'll be ever so grateful you did.

And please don't kill this dish by adding cream to it. If you really want an amazing authentic culinary experience, stick to the reccipe and get the creaminess you want by adding more olive oil and a bit of pasta water to keep it nice and moist.

This is hands down a favorite. I have yet to find someone who didn't love this recipe so I hope you'll be adding this one to your menu soon.

July 30, 2013

Judging by the number of recipes I post on that very theme, two things are evident -

a. I am forever trying to use up a bunch of over-ripe brown bananas &

b. Invariably, food will come into my refrigerator to die.

That food today, raspberries.

Lets face it, in the berry kingdom, raspberries are the Paris Hilton of berries. High maintenance and likely to wilt. Fortunately, brown bananas and raspberries love each other and fortunately for me, so do I.

This bread which is really a cake, makes breakfast an event to look forward to. Wonderful warm, slathered in buttah (come on now! you know I love me some buttah!), it's even better, down right magical toasted and then slathered in butter.

So give it a go because delicious hasn't come in such an easy package in a long time!

January 06, 2013

I'm feeling quite discombobulated this first week of the New Year, not quite in the groove yet after the long winter break.

And so there is only one thing left to do - bake!

It perhaps has something to do with the oh! so brown bananas that forever seem to stare at me out of the fruit bowl. In fact, it seems that most of my baking involves rescuing bananas. That and half eaten cans of pureed pumpkin.

Now I know that decorum suggests that I shelve all pumpkin related eats with the advent of winter but since when have I ever tried to color in the lines!

So as long as cold weather persists and thank goodness, I have at least a good two months offering such a window of opportunity, I intend to pumpkin away as and when my heart desires.

And quite honestly, though this would be wonderful in autumn, why deny oneself the pleasure of banana, pumpkin, hazelnuts and maple all rolled into one delish loaf this winter's day?

June 28, 2012

When the tin box in the kitchen, housing weekly baked goodies runs scant, I have no choice but to get baking.

Because if you've got growing boys around you, you know that hunger seems to be their constant companion. Not withstanding the times when I am sure they are feigning.

For example, right after they've been fed breakfast and we are doing weekend errands. As the scent of grilled meat from a near by restaurant wafts through the the air,

" I am soooo hungry Mom"

"How can that be? We just ate breakfast"

" Mother, are you seriously going to starve your first born son?"

"What did you say?"

I am chuckling now and my 10 year son repeats himself to which he adds,

" Mother, you do know that it is perfectly normal for me to be hungry all the time, since I am going through puberty".

"And were we not going through puberty an hour ago, when you only ate one french toast?"

So you see my dilemma, a near empty box of goodies will only mean more such conversations and so this is a perfect time as any to make a fruit filled loaf.

And since one can never ever have enough recipes featuring brown, overripe bananas, I consider it serendipitous that I have three such specimens on my counter top as we speak.

As far as I'm concerned, banana bread is a treat either way - becoming all the more special when served with a dollop of lemon curd or marmalade and just heavenly when studded with sweet, purple blueberries.

Between that, mushy bananas and puberty, what chance does a mother stand!

March 12, 2012

I take joy in life's little pleasures - kids off to school happy, on time and without a fuss, a string of green lights on my daily commute, no one ramming their shopping cart into mine, a day where no surprise and unexpected bills show up, Mr. Hubby back on time - these are the good days.

Days made only better when you set a cake in the oven and hold your breath just for a second as the timer goes off. Gleeful at the sight of beautiful, rounded perfectly golden top. On such days nothing makes the day complete than fixing that cuppa, cutting into a warm, soft slice of cake, sitting on the patio and watching the world go by.

So you see, this cake is about life's simple pleasures - a cake so perfect in intense banana flavor, with a touch of tang, soft and heavenly that it is a reminder that some of the best things is life are simple, honest and baked.

January 27, 2012

Lets blame it on the cloudy sky, an off day but please don't let my lame photography skills stop you from making one of the most delicious oatmeal creations you'll ever end up putting in your mouth. Guaranteed.

December 11, 2011

Banoffee pie which as the name suggests is essentially a shortcrust pastry topped with homemade toffee filling i.e. dulce de leche, bananas and whipped cream is an English classic.

It is also a recipe that shouldn't be made by goofballs!

By that I mean, people who cannot, will not or simply don't believe in following directions to save their lives, people who leave stuff on the stove and fall asleep or worse walk out the door for a shopping spree.

What's really getting my knickers in a twist is this bit - the homemade toffee, dulce de leche which is essential as the filling.

How to make home made dulce de leche a.k.a toffee filling?

It involves these steps to be followed meticulously - The evening before fixing the pie, roughly 3 hours before going to bed:

1) Use 2 unopened cans of sweetened condensed milk

2) Use a large stock pot and immerse the 2 unopened cans of condensed milk in water. Make sure there is 9 inches of water above the surface of the cans. Cover the stockpot with a tight fitting lid.

3) On medium high heat, simmer the cans for 3 hours. Use a timer to keep track.

4) On the hour, every hour, keep checking to ensure there is at least 6 inches of water above the top of the cans. Replace with hot water as needed.

Goofball alert!*It is absolutely vital to top up the pot of boiling water as needed during the cooking process. 3 hours is a long time and if allowed to boil dry, the cans will explode guaranteeing a trip to E.R. with risk to life, limbs and kitchen ceilings!

5) After 3 hours, turn the stove off, leave well alone and go to bed.

6) Remove the cans from the water the next morning, open and what you will end up with is this -

Invented in East Sussex, England at the Hungry Monk in 1972, Banoffee Pie is even rumored to be Margaret Thatcher’s favourite pudding. The recipe followed in this post is based on the original recipe from the publication ‘The Deeper Secrets of the Hungry Monk’ in 1974.

There are cooks who advocate cooking the condensed milk in a pyrex dish for hours in the oven but in my experience it results in a tough and hard toffee filling that is impossible to cut through once the pie is chilled and at the risk of your teeth falling out of your head.

The 'cooked can' method used here to make the toffee is widely used all over the U.K and is original to the 'Hungry Monk' recipe.

Cook's Note - The toffee, dulce de leche can be made a week in advance and stored in a airtight plastic container in the refrigerator till ready to use. Unopened cans of toffee (the cooked cans) can be stored in the pantry cabinet for upto 3 months and is a great way to always have the fixings of Banoffee pie at hand for that last minute craving or unannounced company.